The Brave Babes Battle Bus - Carry On Into 2011!

[Mouseface]

Hello and a Happy New Year!

I'm Mouse, one of the passengers on this wonderful journey to sobriety!

We are a real mixed bunch of people, all trying to control or give up the booze - ONE DAY AT A TIME.

Come meet the others.........

And here are the previous threads, the journeys so far

JWN - here

Occasionally, we are WHETE (worst healthy eating thread ever) like on FFF (fat free friday) when you are free to eat as much fat as you like just for one day.

But on the whole, we really do try.

Everyone is welcome. Just like here.

thanks mouse!, i will have a little look!

Isindie - I'm off to bed. I wish I were there with you to sit and listen. You need to let this trigger out.

So sorry lovely that tonight is hard for you.

Come back and talk to me in the morning will you?

I'll be back here then.

Mouse out xxx

Hey Indie

Don't beat yourself up, we have all been there. It's really really tough, Look for the positives, a couple of months ago you would have not believed that you could do 5-8 days on a regular basis, you have travelled a really long way in a relatively short space of time.

Keep just trying to do one day at a time, and each day will get easier, and each relapse will be over a longer timeframe.

Keep talking.
Bafana xxx

Indie even by going 5/8 days without I bet that that is alot less than you used to drink. For me I don't want to give up drinking completely just not go as mad, everyday, like I was doing. Instead of thinking of days like to day when you have had a drink just add up all the days that you haven't. My little story below will hopefully cheer you up

I am supposed to be on a date tomorrow night. The guy, think I'll call him physco guy rung me last week and we have emailed/texted a few times. Anyway he has just texted me to say 'Cherios hun take care', I replied asking him how he is and he said he is going to 'go and find someone who is interested in him' wtf. I then couldn'y help but ask if that means that the date was off for tomorrow . He is now sending a string of texts and is really cross that I only text him in response to him! When I reminded him that we haven't even met yet I get 'Typical woman, deflecting, find someone who thinks that is normal and I will eat my hat.

The alarm bells started ringing when he wanted to know why I was on the dating website and had I found someone I prefer to him.

Lucky escape I think :-)

hey indie, i am sitting here with glas of wine in hand. you are not the only serial offender here. While i have cut down a lot, i have never done 8 days non stop.
If you are doing this regularly, you are succeeding.
Stop beating yourself up. You are getting there!

isindie - what you are doing now - the getting off the train pissed - was so exactly me. Please, please don't feel that you are bringing this thread down, or that you are the only one who is drinking - loads still are. You are not alone, but little, by little, by little we're making progress.

Overall you've drunk loads less / less often than you used to I think. That is good. Tonight you felt like you wanted a drink and so you did - at the end of a good day to celebrate, or a long day to unwind. The only problem is that our drinking habits tend to be such that one glass isn't enough, so it would be a bottle plus.

You know the drill. Home, glass of water / big mug of tea, clean your teeth, bed. For as much sleep as you can get.

You seem to have recognised that one of your triggers is tiredness - and I imagine that you must feel pretty tired most of the time. Sometime, have a think about what it is that makes that link between tiredness and having a drink. Is there anything else that you could do that would soothe you? How did you deal with tiredness when you were a child? Suck your thumb? Rub a blanket on your face? Wear your favourite flannelette pyjamas? Hot milk and a cuddle from someone you love?

And ma you've made big changes in the last week. I hope that you're taking your own advice too . Don't beat yourself up. You're getting there. And tomorrow is another day.

Whatever you're drinking now. See if you can stop. Throw the last half glass away and feel good just about that.

Take care brave babes xx

Hi everyone,

Isinde and ma I think you are both success stories in your own ways. I had a wobble on Saturday and drank but unlike you I get so stuck in to my despair and self-pity I didn't come here and talk about it. (I'm improving though, I told my sponsor and we had a good talk on Sunday and I managed to get through big temptations on Sunday and Monday).

Bafana and venus are very wise. About all I can say at the moment is that it is hard and you aren't alone. If it was easy and bouncy and springy all the time we'd all have stopped long ago. It is the hardest and most rewarding thing in the world. I can't imagine never having a drink again at the moment - so am just trying to get through the day. Tiredness is a huge thing for me too, it nearly got me last night.

Am waffling and need to go and get ready for work. Be kind to yourselves today.

Good morning all,

noteven, I hope you have a good day, you sound so different to a couple of weeks ago, you are doing so, so well .

Isindie you are not failing, like all of us, you have a place you want to be, and maybe haven't quite managed it, yet. But, you are trying, and that is better than it used to be, surely?
Afetr 6 weeks, I felt sure that I had changed my thoughts so much that I would never drink to excess again, well, that didn't happen. However, I did shake myself hard, and realise that I could drop right back into my old pattern, if I let myself, and it's so easy to do.

I don't really like to admit this, but, sometimes I wish I was back in the days when I just didn't care about my drinking, and just did it, because I liked it. It made me feel less tired in the evening after the first one, and just felt like "Aaah, I can stop the day now". Then I remember my horrible morning of guilt and remorse, and feeling horrid......

I took great comfort from the people who said to me "forget the wobble, think of all that you've done, so far", and that's what I've done.

One swallow doesn't make a summer, and one night doesn't mean that you are back where you started, because you're not .

I hope you feel ok this morning. xx

One swallow probably not a good analogy

Morning all - laughed at thurso's 'one swallow', but it has made me think. We are all quite good at doing the 'one day at a time' when we are dealing with staying sober, but if we apply it equally to the times we drink, then it could work for us that way as well.

Of course I don't mean the day after day (one day at a time)type of drinking that was my habit, but in the situation where after a few days/weeks/months/years off the booze it could be very destructive to think that just because we'd had a drink one day meant the whole thing was broken, and we might as well have a drink the next day too, and the one after. If in those situations we can hold also to the ODAAT mantra then maybe it WAS just one day of over-drinking amongst many that weren't.

I do understanad that it would be easy to use that as an excuse to give in every time we felt tempted, afer all none of us just suddenly started being an alcoholic, we got into it on the 'one won't hurt' ticket, and for people like MIFLAW and others it would be completely the wrong thing, but for those of us 'learners' still with our L-plates clearly strapped to our backs, then we can use it to forgive ourselves and to get on with the task of being sober TODAY.

Morning lovely Babes,

wasindie (sorry keep forgetting your new name!) do not feel that you are a failure. You are not bringing the thread down or anything like that. We all love you and I hope to see you on here today x

morning all.

Isinde Sorry you were feeling low last night. I am not cured believe me but I'm terrified of having a drink because I tend to go a bit mad and all my ishoos come flowing out. As others have said you have come a bloody long way and can now go without for longer than you imagined. Yesterday was yesterday, today is the important one. I know exactly what it's like having tiredness as my trigger. When mine weren't sleeping through I was having my first drink at 4.30pm as a reward for getting through the day alive and awake. They're not really sleeping through totally now - dd was awake 4 times last night but I seem to be pretending they are

Venus wise words as ever

The other point I wanted to make is how amazed I am at the amount of things that people on this thread achieve on a daily basis. There's a mixed bunch but everyone is so special.

Sorry all a bit emotional that but I genuinely mean it

Isindie sorry you are feeling low, I agree with Venus that tiredness does seem to play a large part in your drinking so as she suggested maybe think of the things that helped you sleep when you were younger.
My trigger is low self-esteem and I have always needed drink to give me the confidence to approach social situations and yes I have managed not to drink at 3 social occasions in the last 2 weeks but they have all been family related. I know that like the Pringles ad says once I pop I can't stop!

Morning Desire How are you? I'm the same with social situations, I drink to give me dutch courage and then can't stop.

Morning Red How are you today?

Zany meant to say. Think you're better off without that date

Morning ruby I am much better than yesterday, thank you for asking! It's so nice not to be fighting a hangover. Sounds so obvious but for us problem drinkers it seems to be very difficult to take on board. How are you?

Morning Ruby and Red:)

Morning desire. How are you today?

Am really tired today Red and have no idea why, had a great nights sleep but really didn't want to get out of the bed this morning, how are you today?

desire totally knackered here too. Could not sleep, was up and smoking at 1am and again at 4am. Although I did have a pleasant surprise when I went back to bed at 1am Sorry that you are tired today - probably all the stress you are under??